What are the most popular kitchen trends on Instagram?
Kitchens are the heart of the home, the place where we sip our morning coffees, cook the kids’ tea and have friends over for posh dinner parties. It’s probably no surprise that kitchens feature heavily in lifestyle blogs and Instagram posts, where the photos are all about selling a lifestyle. Getting a kitchen which is both a functional space and worth showing off on social media doesn’t have to mean spending a fortune. It’s more about tapping into current design trends, knowing what works well on camera and using budget tricks to get both an amazing kitchen, and more likes on your social media account too.
2021’s Biggest Instagram Kitchen Trend – Metallics
Metallics in the kitchen are grown-up and sophisticated, and look great on social media posts too. Opting for brass or copper rather than more traditional chrome can give a warmer feel to your kitchen, and metallics don’t just appear on handles and switches. Many manufacturers are now making appliances in metallic shades rather than just in black or white, or why not consider a metallic paint if you’re considering painting your kitchen cabinets? Another good option is picking a metallic tile for a splashback above the cooker. Less is more when it comes to using metallic shades in your kitchen; a small amount can look fabulous, but overdo it, and the end result can just look jarring and a bit “bling”.
Open Shelves in the Kitchen
Shelves are a very cheap and accessible way of adding extra storage into any kitchen. If you take a bit of care over how you arrange your kitchen essentials on your shelves, then the end result can definitely be Instagram-worthy. Most kitchens have a mixture of standard cupboards with doors and open shelving, so choose the items to display on your open shelving carefully. Shiny pots and pans or brightly coloured crockery will look great; boxes of cereal or chipped mugs are probably best hidden away in the cupboards. Another key trend is to paint your shelves to match the background shade you have on the walls, or to match your kitchen cabinets. If you can’t find shelves which are suitable for painting, or of the right size, then a good joiner should be able to quickly make shelves to your specification and fix them securely to the walls too.
Statement Colours
Feature walls might be a thing of the 90s, but that doesn’t mean that all colour should be banished from the kitchen. Currently, the big interior design trend is for very dark kitchen cabinets, painted navy blue or a deep green. Ripping out a perfectly good kitchen and replacing it with a new, darker units to match a current trend probably isn’t a great idea, but if you were thinking about replacing a kitchen anyway, why not paint the units first to see if you can live with the finish?
Darker Images
Darker images catch the eye more when scrolling through social media, which explains why you appear to see nothing but dark kitchen units. Balance is key though and if you decide to go very dark on your kitchen cupboards, then balance this out by sticking to lighter shades of white or cream on the walls. If on the other hand you have a light coloured kitchen which you’re not ready to replace, you could choose a darker shade of paint or accessories instead.
Pendant Lighting
Pendant lights – large, statement pieces suspended from the ceiling – are a key aspect of many of the most followed kitchen accounts on Instagram. A striking lighting feature can add a touch of sophisticated glamour to your kitchen, but as with everything, the key is in not going too over the top. A bold lighting feature over the central island or kitchen table is a design classic, but don’t forget other types of lighting to give your kitchen that bright and airy feel. Choose something in a metallic shade to tie in with one of the other main themes too. Getting us much natural light into your kitchen as possible is always the best option, but adding in new windows or skylights isn’t always possible. If you feel your kitchen is dark and gloomy think about how you’re arranging the furniture to make sure that there’s nothing blocking light from the windows.
The Trend for Light-Coloured Kitchen Flooring
Dark kitchen units or walls are very on trend, and are balanced out by lighter areas elsewhere in the room. Many homeowners have traditionally been nervous of very light kitchen flooring, believing that it will be impossible to keep clean. However, especially in a smaller room, a lighter colour of flooring can help the room feel bigger too. If you have an open plan layout downstairs, choosing the same flooring to flow throughout the space can also make your home feel bigger too.
Kitchen flooring has to be practical though, especially if you are concerned about spills or ease of cleaning. Avoid any tiles with a pattern carved into the surface – dirt will just accumulate there and cleaning will be far tougher. Look instead for a good quality laminate or vinyl with a smooth surface. These flooring types are very easy to clean and you don’t even need special products; just a squirt of standard all-purpose kitchen cleaner in a bucket of water and a mop.
Going Green in the Kitchen
Plants are a big feature of most Instagram kitchen accounts, and bringing the outside is a trend which never gets old. One of the key looks is to position plants high up on cupboards or shelves, allowing them to trail down to lower levels. If you’re not green-fingered then check out the range of artificial plants available from all the big retailers. Some look very realistic indeed and are certainly more low-maintenance than the growing variety. Add to the green theme by getting some botanical prints or photographs, and place them around the room to feature prominently in any Instagram posts of your new kitchen design.
